Louisiana Tech received a handful of good news on the personnel from the NCAA on Monday, with three players being granted another season of college football from the ever-benevolent NCAA.
Wide receivers Richie Casey and Andrew Guillot, along with offensive lineman Jeremy Graffree, the school stated in a press release, were each given a sixth season of eligibility from The Association. All three appealed to the NCAA based on past medical issues.
“I am excited for these young men to be able to compete on the collegiate level for a full four years,” Tech head coach Skip Holtz said in a statement. “To see the huge smiles on those young men’s faces shows you how hard they have worked to be ready to play this season. All three easily fell into the guidelines for the sixth year that the NCAA has granted them. It is great that they will get to compete for a fourth football season on the collegiate level.”
Casey missed his true freshman and sophomore seasons (2008, 2009) due to knee injuries. When healthy, the receiver has caught 75 passes for 764 yards and four touchdowns.
Guillot missed both of those seasons as well because of his own knee issues. He enters the 2013 season with 45 career receptions for 373 yards and a touchdown, adding 168 yards on 14 punt returns.
Graffree played three seasons at the JUCO level (2008-10), missing one of those seasons due to an injury. After transferring to LaTech, he played in four games in 2011 before missing the entire 2012 season with an Achilles tear.
The school wrote in its press release that it “is still awaiting a ruling on a sixth year for offensive lineman Larry Banks and a waiver for transfers Joseph Brunson (Louisiana-Lafayette) and Paul Turner (LSU) to be eligible to play immediately.”
The latter waivers would provide immediate eligibility for the incoming transfer players.
(Photo credit: Louisiana Tech athletics)